With Father’s Day approaching and many dads working from home during the coronavirus pandemic, the personal-finance website WalletHub today released its report on 2020’s Best & Worst States for Working Dads.

Back in 1960, 75% of American families relied on a single income, according to Adam McCann, a financial writer for WalletHub, that of the dad, who spent much of his week at work while mom stayed home with the kids. Today, two-thirds of family households depend on two incomes. Plus, the contemporary dad no longer fits neatly into the standard of the married breadwinner and disciplinarian. That’s especially true this year, as many fathers are working from home during the COVID-19 pandemic and face a unique opportunity to spend more time face-to-face with their children and help teach them while schools are closed.

Regardless of the changing identity and priorities of the modern dad, fatherhood remains an undisputedly tough job, and a father’s ability to provide for his family is central to his role, according to McCann. In fact, over 93 percent of dads with kids younger than 18 were employed in 2019, and while millions of men have lost their jobs during the COVID-19 pandemic, they are being laid off less often than women. However, not all working dads are in the same situation; those who live in states with greater economic opportunity and quality of life have it better than others.

Find out which states were the top-ranked and  which fell into the bottom in this video.

In order to help dads balance their dual role as parent and provider, WalletHub compared the 50 U.S. states and the District of Columbia across 23 key indicators of friendliness toward working dads. The data set ranges from average length of work day for males to child-care costs to share of men in good or better health.

Life as a Working Dad in California (1=Best; 25=Avg.):

  • 2nd – Male Life Expectancy
  • 43rd – % of Kids Younger than 18 with Dad Present Living in Poverty
  • 45th – Unemployment Rate for Dads with Kids Younger than 18
  • 26th – Male Uninsured Rate
  • 2nd – Avg. Length of Work Day (in Hours) for Males
  • 12th – % of Physically Active Men
  • 47th – Child-Care Costs (Adjusted for Median Family* Income)
  • 49th – Day-Care Quality

*Refers to families with kids aged 0 to 17 and in which the father is present

For the full report, please click here.

Image Sources

  • Working dads: Shutterstock